The Canonical Penguin: Celebrating the Holidays, Penguin style

As we wind down the time we live in Massachusetts and excitedly anticipate life in New Mexico, I find myself contemplating all sorts of memories. The memories of my own kids growing up, triggers other memories - my own growing up in NYC and seeing how life has changed. Holidays go a long way to triggering this memory cascade and since Christmas is the most “holiday” of holidays, it accomplishes this in even more glorious fashion.


(Not our tree but an incredible simulation)

When I was growing up, Santa put up the tree on Christmas Eve, after all the kids went to bed. That night, nothing was there. It mysteriously appeared on Christmas morning, fully decorated with wrapped presents surrounding it. And with 5 kids, there was a lot of surrounding. It still amazes me that we did not have a Christmas Eve tradition and that my parents put the tree up, decorated it and wrapped the presents all in the evening after we went to bed. One very nice thing that Mrsfabp has brought to holiday tradition is some Christmas Eve festivities. We now read the Night Before Christmas and the Birth of Jesus from the Bible and while listening to some holiday music and sipping some egg-nog or warm cider and open a small gift that night. Our kids have really enjoyed this and it is something that we continue to this day. As we are all sitting around that night it just gives me the warmest feeling to know that this is a tradition that will continue on.

As for the tree, I was shocked when we moved to New England and saw how early people put up their tress. Coming from a house where the tree went up so late, by choice, it was a eye opener to see the trees going up right after Thanksgiving. In Mrsfabp’s family I believe the tree went up a bit before Christmas but not weeks and weeks before. I can remember one year going to my uncle’s house the year they got an artificial tree, a real beauty from Macy’s, and he was putting it up several days before Christmas Day, and I was positively scandalized by it going up early.

Now, about the tree itself. We always had a real tree. We had neighbors who were in landscaping and they would always give my dad a deal on a tree. One year they let us sell trees one night when they had some other things to attend to. One year we ran some extension cords for them for extra lights and got the tree for free. Then my uncle got a fake tree and the next year it seems we had one. This was not a keeping up with the Jones’ type thing. I think my parents saw the ease that the fake tree went up and came down without the “vacuuming of the needles” tradition. This went on for several years until one year my sister Jo, demanded we get a real tree again. I was away at college but remember walking into the house the first time with the real tree again and smelling the balsam. Thank you Jo for getting us back on the right track.


(Not our tree farm but an incredible simulation)

In our house we have always had a real tree and when the kids were younger, we cut it down our selves. We would go to a local place and tramp through the woods to find the perfect tree. I can remember several episodes of tears when a particular favorite was not chosen but I think that there are no real bad memories on MillieJupiter’s part about this, Right?

(next up, decorating the tree traditions…)